Russia Beyond Putin – A Scenario for an Alternative Future
On the 9th of September, Mikhail Khodorkovsky took part in “Russia & the West 2020 Rapprochement or Systemic Conflict?” , hosted by Berlin based think tank Center for Liberal Modernity, to discuss ideas presented in his book Gardariki, the Land of Cities.
In the session entitled “Russia Beyond Putin – A Scenario for an Alternative Future”, he was joined by Sergey Lagodinsky, Member of European Parliament, Ralf Fücks, co-founder of Center for Liberal Modernity, and Irina Sherbakova, from the human rights group “Memorial”, in Moscow.
Summarizing the discussion Mr. Fücks noted:
“This discussion was very important against the backdrop of a widespread disbelief in the West and especially in Germany, that Russia could change into a democracy in the future. There is a deep perception that Russia is forever doomed to the authoritarian rule. And even more – there is fear of change in large part of our elites. You have this ongoing narrative that Putin is the lesser evil, a guarantor for stability and any change in Russia will be for worse. Therefore it’s extremely important that we keep up the vision of democratic change not as dreamers, but looking at the real potential for democratic change and not give up the idea that Russia will one day become a part of the community of liberal democracies.”